title: Queen of Shadows

author: Sarah J. Maas

series: Throne of Glass #4

genre: YA, High Fantasy

page count: 645

publication: September 1st, 2015

publisher: Bloomsbury

format: First, American Hardcover

source: Purchased

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she’s at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past . . .

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die just to see her again. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen’s triumphant return.

Celaena’s epic journey has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions across the globe. This fourth volume will hold readers rapt as Celaena’s story builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.

Alright, so this book. Where to start?….

To just sum up without any spoilers, I’m just going to say that I loved this book, it’s my favorite in the series, and my favorite of the year. It was even better then I could imagine, and I’m so excited for book 5. Also, guys do read The Assassin’s Blade before this, it’s not necessary, but you’ll get a different view if you read it first, because old characters return.

Okay, so this is the 4th book in the series, so I can’t really mention anything without spoilers, so from now on there will be spoilers, and I wouldn’t want you guys to get spoiled, so stop reading now, just know that it was great and I loved it!

So, we start off with a Dorian chapter, and it broke my heart. I was on Twitter throughout reading this so I’ll probably include screenshots of the tweets I made throughout this review. But it was so heartbreaking seeing Dorian in that state, and I was just willing for him to fight. I knew he wasn’t going to die, because even if Dorian were to die (which he’s not) he wouldn’t die this early So I knew that they’d find a way to get him out of the collar, but it was still heartbreaking seeing him in that state. All of Dorian’s chapters were sad, and they were all short and abrupt and she just added them in there to break our hearts lol.

Then, Arobynn comes along. I’ve been waiting for that reunion for a bit, and it didn’t disappoint. See, Arobynn has some issues, I knew he was like this psychotic being, but he really is. It was crazy to read about. Finding out that he’d actually told Rourke what to do to Sam, he’s even sicker then I could’ve imagined. Then at the end there, when he put the ring on Aelin’s finger… I have to be honest, I saw that coming, it wasn’t entirely surprising, and I’m surprised Aelin and the crew didn’t see it coming. As soon as he saved the ring, I knew it was for precisely that purpose. That’s another thing with this book, I saw pretty much everything coming, and not to say it was predictable, because not everyone was like me and saw things coming, I think I feel like if I was a writer, I’d write the same way Sarah does, so I can see where she’s going with her story. I’ll get into other scenes where I knew what was going to happen a bit later… But I’m glad Arobynn is finally gone.

Lysandra, I was shocked by her return. Her and Aelin’s friendship I couldn’t have foreseen, especially after reading The Assassin’s Blade, I mean those two hated each other… It was nice though that she got another female friend.I didn’t expect Lysandra’s story line to turn so deep, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I love that she’s a shapeshifter, and that she’s rare and unique, and I love that she’s part of Aelin’s court. It’s just all great. Also, she’s definitely going to be getting with Aedion later on, they’re adorable.

Let’s talk about Chaol -__-…. Oh my I hated him in this book, by the end there, I liked him again, but he really needs to get his shit together, by the end of Heir of Fire I liked him again bu then we start off this book and he’s once again a piece of shit. It’s one or the other, choose and stick with it. Yes, there were certain points in this where I saw his points, but other times he was just ugh. But when he refused to tell her about magic, really…. I hate how he thought she’d just kill Dorian, like if she did it would be to save him from this life of despair, she cares about him just as much as you do.. Then he had some stupid line about how when magic returned, ordinary non magic wielders would be irrelevant, like shut up… I understand his concerns but he just went the wrong way about it.

As you can tell I was really aggravated lol.

Then Chaol and Nesryn. I loved Nesryn, another badass female, and I liked her relationship with Chaol. I mean I hope they find happiness together, but I don’t really care if I’m being honest. Chaol’s future is really irrelevant at the moment, I no longer think he’s going to die now, because Nesryn is in the picture, but I don’t know. I don’t want him to die, because I don’t want Dorian to lose his friend, especially not now. When the King said he’d “killed” Chaol, I knew he was lying because he never actually came out and said ” I killed Chaol” I knew he was just toying with them.

Soo, the King. As I got more into the book I started thinking what if the King was actually just like Dorian under someone else’s control. I didn’t really go too deep into the theory, it was just always in the back of my head, and turns out I was right. I don’t think his final words were lies, but a lot of things don’t add up. He says that everything he’s done was to protect Dorian, but he put a collar around his neck… I wasn’t sure if he was going to die at the end or not…but since he’s not the big bad wolf in this then I guess he had to go. I can’t believe Dorian is King, oh wow. So proud of my baby. He’s been though so much though, and he has to heal. Oh, and here’s what I was talking about earlier on, when Aelin went to the castle with Chaol not thinking the King already knew she was Aelin. I wasn’t surprised when he called her Aelin, and I’m not sure why she was. The man isn’t stupid, he can add two an two together.

Duke Perrington was a nice twist. I mean it doesn’t make sense because Perrington seemed to be so submissive to the King, but I’m guessing he had to be to keep up appearances, since he’s only a Duke and he was the King. I’m so excited to see where this is all going. It was so sad seeing Roland, like oh wow. Then Kaltain, and the shadowfire. I’m glad she got to go out with that bang at the end.

So now we’re getting more into Manon and her story line. I loved Manon so much, I actually think she might be even be more badass then Aelin is. I loved Asterin’s part in this book, I was actually quite surprised that Asterin broke that brainwash before Manon did. Hearing her story with the hunter, and her child, it was heartbreaking. I love that Manon is breaking through now too. By the end of this I think she’s definitely going to be fighting on Aelin’s side of this war. I loved that fight scene with Manon and Aelin, it was one of my ultimate favorites. I loved that Aelin saved her and in return Manon told her about Dorian still being in there. I loved the Elide story, it took me a bit to remember who she was, but when I figured it out… I’m so looking forward to that reunion too. So many reunions! Also, Manon and Dorian, anyone else seeing a potential relationship brewing… idk, it’s interesting, but we’ll get more into that when I talk about Rowan and Aelin. This is going to be so long lol.

Absolutely loved Aedion and Aelin’s reunion. Loved Rowan and Aelin’s reunion, my favorite was probably Aedion and Rowan’s meeting, because I’d been anticipating that one. The whole blood oath dilemma was sad, but I feel like that fight was dragged by both parties. I understand that Aedion had been waiting for this his whole life, but it was her oath to offer so he should’ve respected that, and Aelin, she knew how important it was to him, so she could’ve been more compassionate, but it all worked out in the end. I love Aedion and Rowan relationship, how they call each other brothers, and Aedion was willing to die for him. I knew that was the way it was going to end up between them once they got past their differences. I cried when Rowan came back, it was so beautiful.

So Rowan and Aelin’s relationship.I ship it, I do, but they’re not gonna last. One it’s too complicated, he’s immortal, she’s not, and also, they were introduced too early. There are still 2 books left, do you guys really think they’re going to stay together?.. No. I’m still 100% sure Dorian is endgame, and that’s why they’re not together now. Also, Rowan’s lines in this book tho, I was shocked lol. I’d be fine if they ended up together, really, but it’s not gonna happen. I actually think that he and Manon will end up together, is it just me? Because Manon and Dorian are like something now, and it’s like really.. Aelin with an immortal, Dorian possibly with an immortal as well, so you see where I’m heading at…SO yeah.

Also, I love how she changed the narrative from Celaena to Aelin, although I’m going to miss seeing Celaena written because it’s a beautoful name. I love how when Dorian saw her he said Aelin as opposed to Celaena ♥

Alright, lastly that scene with Aelin and Dorian in that tower. I’ll just let my tweets speak for themselve , because they’re so endgame.

Yup, I mean, did you see how great and amazing and unstoppable they were together, INFINITE guys, INFINITE. Fire and Ice, I’ve been saying it all along, not even Rowan can keep up with that.

Okay, I think I covered everything. Leave your thoughts below!

I’ll include some other tweets that didn’t make it in the review below

Like this:

title: Shadow and Bone

author: Leigh Bardugo

series: Grisha #1

genre: YA, High Fantasy

page count:356

publication: June 5, 2012

publisher:Henry Holt & Co (macmillan)

format: Hardcover

source:Owned

Surrounded by enemies, the once-great nation of Ravka has been torn in two by the Shadow Fold, a swath of near impenetrable darkness crawling with monsters who feast on human flesh. Now its fate may rest on the shoulders of one lonely refugee.

Alina Starkov has never been good at anything. But when her regiment is attacked on the Fold and her best friend is brutally injured, Alina reveals a dormant power that saves his life—a power that could be the key to setting her war-ravaged country free. Wrenched from everything she knows, Alina is whisked away to the royal court to be trained as a member of the Grisha, the magical elite led by the mysterious Darkling.

Yet nothing in this lavish world is what it seems. With darkness looming and an entire kingdom depending on her untamed power, Alina will have to confront the secrets of the Grisha . . . and the secrets of her heart.

Shadow and Bone is the first installment in Leigh Bardugo’s Grisha Trilogy.

This book has been on my TBR for awhile so I just finally decided to pick it up because I’m in a fantasy mood. I just finished reading Heir of Fire (it was awesome, that review is probably already up) so anyways since this is also fantasy I couldn’t help but compare Alina to Celaena, and I have to say Celaena is a lot more badass, granted she is an assassin, but Alina is a soldier so I expected her to be better, but once she actually tapped into her power, she was great. I absolutely loved Leigh’s writing, it flowed so nicely with the story, I finished it in practically one sitting, it was like watching a movie, before I knew it I was turning the last page. I’m so excited to read the next 2, I don’t own them but I’ll pick them up at the library.

I finished this book last night feeling highly confused and betrayed, I mean literally everyone I’ve seen talk about this book mentions how much they love The Darkling, and I did too, I mean even after the Baghra scene, I thought she was lying. I’m really confused, I mean maybe things will change, I don’t know. Nevertheless, he’s a very very interesting character. I do ship him and Alina, even now I still do. Mal, he’s cute, I like him too, but I feel like her and The Darkling have more chemistry.

This world is a bit complicated, with Throne of Glass I feel like I got into it more quickly, not the book, just the world, this one is a bit more complex and harder to get. See the Grisha have 3 different categories and then within those there are subcategories, so at the front of the book there’s a page listing them all so I found myself having to flip back a bunch of time, but then as the story progressed I understood a bit more the 3 main categories, but the sub-ones I’m still not 100% on, but by the next book I’ll probably be a pro. I flipped back to the map as well a couple of times, but that’s expected. At first I was really confused as to why they couldn’t just go around the shadow fold, but a closer to the map revealed that Ravka (the country) is surrounded by 2 enemy lands, so they couldn’t travel through either way.

I really enjoyed this book and this world and these characters, though I didn’t really feel much attachment to them just yet, I don’t think I’m going to list this as one of my favorites yet, but I think if the story keeps going as it is now, it’ll make it.

My favorite character was probably The Darkling, because he was the most interesting one to read about, I wish we’d gotten to read from his perspective, but the story is told in first person, so that’s not likely to happen unless there’s dual narration in the next books.

I’m excited to finish it and if I still love it by the end then I’ll definitely get Six of Crows her newest book once it’s out,because I do love this world and her writing.

Now I’m going to go into some spoilers, so you’ve been warned (:

Okay so Mal, from the moment I realized Alina was in love with him, I knew he also felt the same way, even though it turned out he didn’t know it. I like them together, that scene before the stag was adorable, and him deserting the army for her, all he did was pretty touching, they’re cute, but like that’s it. Her and The Darkling though, that’s like fire, the chemistry is so real.

That scene with the stag was so stupid, I mean it ended up working for her anyways, but she knew the stag was going to die anyways, so why not just do it, I mean yes that sounds cruel and I love how her showing it mercy meant she could still control the stag, but if that hadn’t worked then she would’ve been fucked.

I still loved The Darkling up until that point when he said he’s throw Mal into the Fold, and when he did…… it’s not that I loved Mal so much, but there’s a line and if Mal had died at his hands, there was no way I could’ve forgiven him, ever, because that’s cruel and there’s no going back from that. When he pushed the fold into the border, I honestly was still confused at that point, because I couldn’t understand how it all came to this, like who is this guy?….

When we found that he was actually the Black Heretic, I was like she’s lying, there’s no way, how could I have been played like this?…

I don’t know, I just don’t…

But when Alina actuallly realized that her power was hers and that he doesn’t control her, I was just like finally. That was a nice scene.

I’m so glad Mal survived though because if he hadn’t I wouldn’t of continued because there’d be no point, like there wouldn’t have been any salvation for him, but I’m glad he’s fine for now.

Like this:

title: Heir of Fire

author: sarah j. maas

series: throne of glass #3

genre: ya, high fantasy

page count: 562

publication: september 2, 2014

publisher: bloomsbury

format: e-book

source:library

She was the heir of ash and fire, and she would bow to no one.

Celaena Sardothien has survived deadly contests and shattering heartbreak—but at an unspeakable cost. Now she must travel to a new land to confront her darkest truth…a truth about her heritage that could change her life—and her future—forever.

Meanwhile, brutal and monstrous forces are gathering on the horizon, intent on enslaving her world. To defeat them, Celaena must find the strength to not only fight her inner demons but to battle the evil that is about to be unleashed.

The king’s assassin takes on an even greater destiny and burns brighter than ever before in this follow-up to the New York Times bestselling Crown of Midnight.

Alright, so this book, this book. I can’t even begin. I loved it so much.

It’s my favorite so far, I loved the new characters and the different perspectives, I loved the ending (well it was heartbreaking) but still epic. I loved Rowan so much, see Rowan is the Will/ Jace of the story, he starts off as this arrogant asshole, but it’s the tyoe of arrogant asshole where you can already tell there’s something else underneath it all, and when we deep enough to meet that person, oh it’s beautiful.

Then there’s Manon who was such an interesting character, I mean when you first meet her she’s like this bloodsucker witch, she’s awful really, but she’s interesting, from the first chapter we meet her, I could already tell that she was going to be a great character to read about, by her second chapter I could tell there was more to her. There also was a mention of Ansel (if you’ve read Assassin’s Blade you know) but I’m so excited to see her again, I’m so glad she succeeded in her goals, and I can’t wait to see that reunion between her and Celeana.

Then there’s Aedion whom I adore, I loved him. I never believed he was actually on the King’s side because he’s related to Aelin, and that’s just not possible, though the fact that he had made a replica of the ring, was a nice surprise, he’s really smart. People seem to think he might be a love interest to Aelin, which no, that’s not happening. they’re cousins, not closely, but they’re cousins who grew up together as cousins so that’s not happening. He’s a protector, kind of like Chaol but a hell of a lot more interesting.

Then Sorscha, I really thought she was actually Yrene, the healer from the first novella, but nope. Her story line was pretty interesting to say the least…

I loved seeing Wendlyn too, it was nice being away from Adarlan.

Oh and Maeve what a bitch, she and the King would make a cute couple..

So yeah, that’s all I have to say without spoilers, from here on there will be spoilers, some might be mild some might not.

Okay, so a lot of people say that Manon’s story line was their least favorite, but here’s the thing, I really enjoyed her chapters, there were times when things were happening in someone else’s story and it’d switch to Manon and I’d want it to just hurry along, but I was never bored in her chapters, she was a very interesting character to read about, I knew there was much more to her then what seemed, so it was interesting reading more about her. That fight scene with Abraxos vs Titus, that was a beautiful scene, one of my favorites. I loved their relationship so much, I love how Manon was starting to feel love for him, but she didn’t know how to put it in words, so she just said grateful for his existence lol . Then that scene with the Spiders, that scene reminded me so much of Annabeth and Arachne in Mark of Athena. I was so shocked when she just stole the silk and it was so nice seeing her and Abraxos form that plan. I think there’s definitely going to be payback for that, but it was still really nice and smart of her to do. I’m excited to see that scene in QoS where she meets Celaena, she’s definitely going to start to realize that she’s not who all those other witches have tried to turn her into.

So, Sorscha, you know I actually enjoyed her little romance with Dorian. I mean I knew it wasn’t going to last, but I think it was fair for him to have his own romance and to feel loved, I mean after all Celaena put him through, he deserved it. Although, it broke my heart it see his pain, but her dying was really the only way this could’ve have gone. She really didn’t deserve to die, but it was the only way for it to go.. Then Dorian has the collar around his neck now, but we’ll talk about that in a bit…

My absolute favorite of this book was the Rowan and Celeana relationship and story line. My favorite scene was the one in Maeve’s palace where Celeana bargained for his freedom and then he pledge a new one to her, it was so beautiful, and it was the real first time we really see Rowan emotional (besides that scene where he tells us about his mate).They’re my absolute favorites, and at the end when she’s leaving and she’s crying and he’s wiping away the tears…. I loved that they’re carranam. I don’t think their relationship is really romantic, but if Dorian wasn’t in the picture I’d definitely probably be team Rowan. I can’t wait for Rowan to join her in Erilea when magic does come back, because it’s coming back.

It was nice seeing Celaena’s internal struggles with her Fae form and magic, and learning all about her past. Then when she finally accepted her fate, who she was and who she had to be, it was so nice. Oh and that scene with little Dorian, the most adorable thing.

so Chaol, oh Chaol, I’ve never been so frustrated. First off, him telling Aedion about Celaena’s true identity,how stupid can you be…. Aedion said the exact same thing, I mean what if he had been under the King’s control, what if he was loyal to him, you don’t just tell her secret like that…. Yes, I did trust Aedion, but still. Then he was always so indecisive, oh “I’m not really on your side, but I’m not really on the King’s side either”… like shut up and pick one already. I hated that they kept Dorian in the dark, and when he did find out, I loved his reaction so much. See, Dorian never had doubts, he was always on Aelin’s side, but Chaol, nope. I loved it when Celaena finally let go of him at the end of the book, sorry Chaolaena shippers, but your ship has sunk, and it’s not coming back up, and I couldn’t be happier. Again, it’s not that I don’t like Chaol, but he’s just not right for her. Oh and that part where she asked Rowan about Chaol being her mate because she tried to kill him….. Nope hunny, he’s not.

Aedion was probably my second favorite new character. Aelin has so many people that are loyal to her and love her. Aedion was a great new addition to the story, and I can’t wait to see that reunion. I know the King is setting a trap for her, but he doesn’t know Aelin is also Celeana, so she’s smarter then he’s giving her credit for. I wonder how this is all going to go down, is she going to go back undercover as Celaena, or just be Aelin.

Oh I loved how we went back to the apartment on top of the warehouse because it reminded me of poor Sammy, and her old life, if you haven’t read The Assassin’s Blade you really have to.

When Aedion mentioned Dorian rising up to fight with them , I was like of course he’s going to fight, and he already started because that scene….

Okay so that scene, when Chaol finally gets his head out of his ass and stands up to the King. I loved the part when Chaol told Dorian he loved him, and Dorian just nodded, I mean I know it wasn’t in a rude way but it was still so funny. Dorian was so badass, Fire and Ice guys, Fire and Ice. I’m so scared for him, like I can’t wait for Celeana to know what happened to him, and to save him. I think she’s going to have an interaction with evil Dorian and it’s going to be so emotional. I don’t think Celorian is going to happen immediately, Celaena I think has healed from Chaol, but he still has to heal from Sorscha.

I’m so excited for Queen of Shadows, this series might just be my favorite fantasy series to date. She’s definitely one of my favorite authors.

Like this:

title: the assassin’s blade

author: sarah j. mass

series: throne of glass #0.1-0.5

page count: 448

publication: march 4, 2014

publisher: bloomsbury

format: hardcover

source: library

Celaena Sardothien is Adarlan’s most feared assassin. As part of the Assassin’s Guild, her allegiance is to her master, Arobynn Hamel, yet Celaena listens to no one and trusts only her fellow killer-for-hire, Sam. In these action-packed novellas – together in one edition for the first time – Celaena embarks on five daring missions. They take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, where she fights to liberate slaves and seeks to avenge the tyrannous. But she is acting against Arobynn’s orders and could suffer an unimaginable punishment for such treachery. Will Celaena ever be truly free? Explore the dark underworld of this kick-ass heroine to find out.

This book contains 5 prequel novellas, but I’ll just write this review as a whole instead of about each.

But first, I just want to have a little conversation about Sam. I mean if you all have been keeping up with my reviews, then you know I’m team Dorian, but Sam, I didn’t expect that, I mean it’s one thing to read Celeana remembering him, but it’s another to actually meet him and to see their story unfold. Sam really is goals, he’s the ultimate ship, I mean Dorian is definitely endgame now, but Sam would’ve been too. They were so good together, it was beautiful seeing them fighting side by side, and just he didn’t deserve what happened to him. Also, I don’t know if it’s just me, but Sam really reminded me of Dorian, you’d think that since he was a warrior he’d remind me of Chaol, but nope.

Anyways, I enjoyed this book, I mean the first 2 novellas were just okay, but the last three were pretty amazing.

From now on there might be mild spoilers, but nothing too bad.

My favorite out of the 5 would probably be The Empire, or The Underworld, and I really enjoyed The Desert as well. I think The Healer was my least favorite because not much happened. The Pirate Lord is the first mission we see with her and Sam, and they started off as nemesis’ but it was so nice seeing the ending of that series, because it’s really the turning point in their relationship. Also, what I loved about these novellas is that so many things click, I mean if you remember when Celeana said in Throne of Glass that she’d freed 200 slaves, well we get to see that. It was so nice to see Celeana pre- Endovier, she’s really changed a lot, there were times in this book where she was being bitchy for no reason, but she’s a lot different in Throne of Glass. Remember in Crown of Midnight when she told the boys about the Asterion horse she’d once stolen? Well we also get to see that, then also when she killed Yellowlegs and said that a friend had once told her that the only way to kill a witch was to cut off her head? We meet that friend as well.

Then we also see Dorian and Chaol in there, and it was beautiful, like how can anyone tell me Dorian isn’t endgame, I mean……….. He met her before all of this went down, and they had such a great interaction, I’m surprised that neither of them seem to remember, and Chaol was also there of course guarding the prince, but he’s irrelevant in all this.

The most heartbreaking thing about all this, you know how Celeana always says “I’m Celeana Sardothien and I will not be afraid” ? (this might be a slight spoiler, well it just came as a surprise to me so I don’t want to ruin it for you guys so if you wanna read this then just highlight–> Well it was actually Sam’s line first. |

When Sam left to kill Rourke I was crying because I knew what was coming and then seeing Celeana go through all of this, feeling so guilty….Then there was the scene where she sees his body……

We actually find out who it is betrayed her, I mean in the series, she has her suspicions, but we actually find out for sure, and it’s fucked up on so many levels, I mean the reasoning beyond it all is so fucked up.

Like this:

title: crown of midnight

author: sarah j. maas

series: throne of glass #2

page count:418

publication: august, 27, 2015

publisher: bloomsbury

format: e-book

source: owned

“A line that should never be crossed is about to be breached.

It puts this entire castle in jeopardy—and the life of your friend.”

From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.

Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.

Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena’s world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie… and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.

This book was just as good as the first, I think I preferred it to Throne of Glass, but I also didn’t appreciate the lack of Dorian moments in this book. I mean he was there, and we heard from him because he was going through his own dilemma, but we had an abundance of Chaol and Celeana time, and I got frustrated quick, but we’ll get more into that later on. If you haven’t read Throne of Glass yet, then you should, and if you have and haven gotten to Crown of Midnight yet, then you should. That’s all I can really say guys, just this series is getting better and better. I’m currently reading The Assassin’s Blade before Heir of Fire and it’s great too so far. Sam is amazing, and fierce just like her. Here’s my review for Throne of Glass.

So yeah, from now on this will contain spoilers, and not mild ones, so beware.

OKayyy, so we find out so much in this book, it’s ridiculous.You know I had a feeling Celeana wasn’t actually killing the people the king sent her to kill, I didn’t doubt her for a second.

First I want to talk about the romance between Chaol and Celeana, you know I’m glad it happened, so she can get it out of the way lol, but I’m still team Dorian 100%. I really don’t get why people ship her so much with Chaol, I mean he’s fine, but I still can’t see him as a love interest. I still see him as more of a protector, even after all of this, I still don’t see it. I’m sorry, but I can’t. Dorian is so noble, like when they were on the horses and he realized what was happening, even though he was hurting all he said was “Treat her well”, like my poor prince.

Then there was Nehemia dying, I didn’t see that one coming, after the speech she had with Queen Elena, I really thought they were going to like kill Chaol or something, but to find out that she had died and all the pieces came to place, I couldn’t believe it. When Celeana almost killed Chaol, I had to be honest, I wouldn’t of had minded him dying there, I mean really it was like kill him, don’t kill him, oh well. I was just as pissed at Chaol as Celeana was, I can’t believe he didn’t tell her or Nehemia…. Dorian would’ve done something. Remember in book 1 when the King and the Duke wanted to hold Nehemia captive, even though Dorian knew he couldn’t tell her, he still fought hard and stood up to his father about how horrible of an idea this was, so without her knowing it, he had saved her, but Chaol noooo, just kept quiet about everything; I mean, even if he didn’t tell Celeana or Nehemia, the least he could’ve done was watch over her himself, I mean he could’ve done something……

So, Dorian has magic, and Celeana is actually Fae, and she’s Aelin, the rightful heir to the Terrasen Throne, omg this turn of events was an unexpected one, but a welcome one. Dorian and her are meant to be, I mean they can relate on so much more now. I loved the scene underneath the library when Dorian was there with her as they fought the creature, it was nice seeing them working together like that. It was nice seeing Dorian trust her enough to show her his powers. This is going to be so great, I mean imagine how powerful they could be together, the heir of Adarlan and the heir of Terrasen, they’d be such great rulers. In Throne of Glass I thought Aelin might actually have been Nehemia, but it makes sense because remember how she was so certain that the person claiming to be Aelin was an impostor, she was so sure because she is Aelin. This series has such great potential and so far it’s living up to every second of it.

Oh and Archer, I didn’t really suspect him, did any of you see him coming?I can’t believe he was behind Nehemia’s murder.

I loved how Gavin came to Dorian to warn him about Celeana opening the portal, and Elena came to Celeana all the time, I mean come on, Gavin could’ve gone to Chaol, but he chose Dorian, I think they ship it too lol.

I was kind of upset at the end when she told Chaol about her being a Fae, but not Dorian, and also when she knocked out Dorian to go after Chaol and Fleetfoot in the portal, like did you really have to..? So anyways, yes Chaol saw her as Fae and Dorian did not, but I want her to tell him, soon. Then at the end, when she told Chaol about the Wyrdkeys and the date, I was upset again that she chose to tell him and not Dorian, but she did explain that she wasn’t ready to tell him because it’ll destroy him or something like that knowing that his dad was doing all that, and yeah I get it, but he has to know, soon. I hate how rude she was to Dorian early on, and then when all went to hell with Chaol she goes “I do have a friend, Dorian” and I was like noo shitttt lol, if only you stopped being so rude to him at first.

Then the the end, I’m excited to see Wendlyn and to meet infamous Rowan, but it was so dumb and possessive of Chaol to propose the deal to the king without consulting her first, like he’s always doing dumb shit like this, ughhh.
But anyways, this series is so good! So good!

What were your thoughts? Have you read Heir of Fire yet? What’d you think? I’m curious, did any of you switch teams after reading this book?

Like this:

title: throne of glass

author: sarah j. maas

series: throne of glass #1

page count: 404

publication: August 7, 2012

publisher: bloomsbury

format: Hardcover

source: library

After serving out a year of hard labor in the salt mines of Endovier for her crimes, 18-year-old assassin Celaena Sardothien is dragged before the Crown Prince. Prince Dorian offers her her freedom on one condition: she must act as his champion in a competition to find a new royal assassin.

Her opponents are men-thieves and assassins and warriors from across the empire, each sponsored by a member of the king’s council. If she beats her opponents in a series of eliminations, she’ll serve the kingdom for three years and then be granted her freedom. Celaena finds her training sessions with the captain of the guard, Westfall, challenging and exhilirating. But she’s bored stiff by court life. Things get a little more interesting when the prince starts to show interest in her… but it’s the gruff Captain Westfall who seems to understand her best.

Then one of the other contestants turns up dead… quickly followed by another. Can Celaena figure out who the killer is before she becomes a victim? As the young assassin investigates, her search leads her to discover a greater destiny than she could possibly have imagined.

Okay, so I loved this book. I mean the hype around it is real, so I kind of went in expecting it to be great, and it didn’t disappoint. It’s high fantasy, and it’s amazing. Celeana was such a great character to read from. She’s super badass and she’s pretty funny, I loved her POV. Then we have Chaol and Dorian, the love interests. Yes, this has a love triangle in it, but it doesn’t really take main focus in the story, she’s too amazing for that. I’m just going to come out and say it, I’m team Dorian, and I’ve just finished reading Crown of Midnight, so if anyone expected that it would change my mind, it didn’t. I’m with Christine on this one, Dorian FTW! Here’s the thing with Chaol, I like him, I do, but I don’t see him as a love interest. I see him more as a protector, like a best friend really, but Dorian is so clearly the right love interest, I don’t get why everyone doesn’t see it that way. I was so frustrated during Crown of Midnight…..but that’s for the next review. To be honest, when I finished this book, even though I was leaning more towards Dorian, I was still one the fence, but after Crown of Midnight, the path was super clear. I mean they share so much in common, I mean I really don’t get why people ship her with Chaol over Dorian lol.. Dorian is glorious compared to Chaol who’s just like basic……

So basically, this book was amazing, I loved every second of it, and I loved the sequel just as much. I’d recommend everyone to read this, especially if you enjoy the show Reign, Game of Thrones, if you liked Legend by Marie Lu (different genre, but I feel like Celeana and June are a bit similar). From now on there might be mild spoilers about the book so read at your own caution (:

I loved when Celeana wrote to Dorian about borrowing the books from the library, and he sent back the tower of books to her, that was so cute.

So anyways, the competition, I loved the friendship she developed with Nox. How badass she was in all the challenges. The final battle was so suspenseful to read about, I mean I loved how she easily beat Grave,but then I was so mad she didn’t realize the wine was poisoned. It felt suspenseful because I didn’t know whether or not she would win. I knew she wasn’t going to die, but I didn’t know if she would win, because the story could’ve gone either way really, she could’ve ended up not becoming the King’s Champion, and granted the story would’ve been different, but I think it could of still happened, and honestly, until Elena came, I didn’t see how she was going to get out of it.

Queen Elena, so apparently Celeana shares blood with her somehow, I loved her arc in the story, it was nice to have her like a guardian angel looking over Celeana, and Nehemia, I love her too, her friendship with Celeana is beautiful, and I think much needed on both parts.

When Dorian gave her that bag of candy and the puppy, oh that was just such a beautiful scene. I love how she ate like the whole bag of candy, it shows that even though she’s this badass assassin, she still has a childish humanity inside her.

Cain being the one behind the killings I saw coming, and the rings with the duke and the king, and I want to know more about Kaltain’s role in all of this.

This book was such a great debut, and I’m looking forward to continuing on with it. I have Heir of Fire left, but before that I’ll read The Assassin’s Blade because there are so many references to her past in both this book and Crown of Midnight, so I want to know more and meet this infamous Sam.

Have you read this book? Series? Leave you thoughts below! Also, which team are yo on?

Source: Sent to me by the publisher for an honest review. (The first book, Frostborn, was also sent to me for review purposes)

Since this is a sequel and I’ve never talked about the prequel on here before, I’ll include the synopsis for it first:

Meet Karn. He is destined to take over the family farm in Norrøngard. His only problem? He’d rather be playing the board game Thrones and Bones.

Enter Thianna. Half human, half frost giantess. She’s too tall to blend in with other humans but too short to be taken seriously as a giant.

When family intrigues force Karn and Thianna to flee into the wilderness, they have to keep their sense of humor and their wits about them. But survival can be challenging when you’re being chased by a 1,500-year-old dragon, Helltoppr the undead warrior and his undead minions, an evil uncle, wyverns, and an assortment of trolls and giants.

Twelve-year-old Desstra is in training to join the Underhand, the elite agents of the dark elves. But her graduation is jeopardized by the betrayal of a teammate. Things go from bad to worse when she is sent far from home on a secret mission, under the supervision of this same rival, whose approval she must win if she is to graduate and realize her life’s dream.

Karn is trading in the city of Bense, when he is snatched into the air by a wyvern. The creature carries him across the wilderness straight to the Blasted City, to Sardeth, home of the dragon Orm. Is Karn about to be a dragon’s dinner?

Fate doesn’t have anything so easy in store for him. The great dragon tells Karn he believes a second Horn of Osius exists, hidden across the continent in the city of Castlebriar. What’s more, Orm has previously sent Thianna Frostborn on a mission to recover the horn, but her wyvern returned without her. It seems Thianna has run afoul of the dark elves. Now Karn must rescue his friend and together they must uncover the horn before the dark elves get ahold of this powerful relic.

With only a dragon’s blessing to aid them and a mysterious riddle to guide them, Karn and Thianna must race the dark elves to a prize that could alter the fate of nations.

Okay, so I really enjoyed both of these books, this is a great series. When I first got the email asking for the review, what mostly drew me in was that it had Norse Mythology, and that fans of Rick Riordan would enjoy it. I mean, you all know how much I love Rick Riordan and his works, and he’s also coming out with a new series on Norse Myths so that was great too. I’ve been getting into Thor and all that fun stuff. Isn’t Loki the most amazing villain the world has ever seen, I love him so much.

Anyways, back to the books. They were both just such fun rides, honestly, you meet mythical creatures and have adventures, it was great. Our main characters in the first book are Karn and Thianna, Karn is obsessed with this board game called Thrones & Bones, and Thianna is pretty much a joke in her let’s say “pack”. She’s half human, so she’s only 7 ft tall as opposed to the other giants who are 15. Karn has his things too, he’s the first born son so his role is to take over the family farm, but he doesn’t want to do that, he liked adventures, and his board games.

Evidently, something happens and brings these two characters together to fight for their survival. The adventure begins, there’s a task at hand and it’s up to them to accomplish it. I loved Karn and Thianna’s friendship development, and both of their character arcs throughout the novel. I think readers will love this, and they’ll also take something from it.

The story ended well, but also led into the sequel. This review is mainly supposed to be about Nightborn, but since it’s an ARC and a sequel I don’t typically write spoilers, so that’s why I talked about the first book more, because if I hadn’t then I would’ve spoiled it for you by talking about this one.

So in order to not spoil Frostborn, all I’m going to say is that the adventure continues, it picks up where it’s prequel left off. We meet new people, see old characters make a comback, there are other tasks, and the action is still there. It’s just as good.

Something else about these books, I love the pacing. You’re never really bored reading it, nothing is too short or too long, it’s just perfect.

I would recommend you read this series evidently if you’re a fan of the Percy Jackson series, if you’re into fantasy, and giants, and elves,and all those fun creatures.

She is Princess Lia, seventeen, First Daughter of the House of Morrighan.

The Kingdom of Morrighan is steeped in tradition and the stories of a bygone world, but some traditions Lia can’t abide. Like having to marry someone she’s never met to secure a political alliance.

Fed up and ready for a new life, Lia flees to a distant village on the morning of her wedding. She settles in among the common folk, intrigued when two mysterious and handsome strangers arrive—and unaware that one is the jilted prince and the other an assassin sent to kill her. Deceptions swirl and Lia finds herself on the brink of unlocking perilous secrets—secrets that may unravel her world—even as she feels herself falling in love.

Well, this book has a lot of hype surrounding it. I had really high expectations which is probably why I didn’t love it at first . I got this book back in September, started reading it then, stopped because I wasn’t really feeling it, then picked it back up a few days ago. The story has a lot of potential, the ending was amazing, and it (the second half) was fast paced, but nothing exciting happened during the first 200 pages, and that was an issue. The book starts off with the princess running, so you’d think it’d continue in that suspenseful action setting, but no. We then get to read from the assassin’s perspective, and from the prince’s, and I have to say I loved the prince instantly. We then meet Kaden and Rafe, the two male leads, one of them is the prince, and the other the assassin, and that’s something we have to figure out. I have to be honest and say that I guessed wrong, but I have my reasons, I’ll go into it in the spoilers, but subconsciously I knew I was probably wrong, but I was stubborn and decided that my original choice had to be right, even though I was starting to figure out, it was not. Here’s the thing, those first 200 – 300 pages were all about Lia’s new life and about her falling in love with one of the boys (yes, there is a love triangle) and that was fine at first, but then it got to the point where I just wanted something, anything to happen. This is supposed to be the story of a princess who escapes on her wedding day, and there’s supposed to be an assassin after her, I wanted some action. I kept reading though, because I certainly wasn’t that bored, and when the action finally started happening, with the form of an attack on her, I was hooked. That was the turning point of the story for me. After that it was amazing. If the start had been as good as the end, then this book would’ve been 5 stars, but alas, I have to be fair. I have very high expectations for the sequel now, because it seems like it’ll pick up right on the action considering how this one ended. I’ve seen the arcs floating around, and I wish I’d requested one because I know it’s probably late for me to request one now, but I didn’t know whether or not I was going to like it, so that wouldn’t have been wise.

The love triangle in this book, isn’t up to level with Will/Jem/Tessa but I think it’s better than Aspen/America/Maxon, but it doesn’t seem like it’ll be too hard of a love triangle because she seems to have already picked one, even though she does still care about the other. As for me, I’ve been Team Prince since the start, but I was rooting for the assassin unknowingly lol, if you’ve read the book, then you get it. I love them both, I do, and since I’d set my mind that the actual assassin was the prince, I didn’t pay attention to the actual prince, because I thought he was the assassin, but now that I know better, I’m team prince, but the assassin is still in the running (:

Lia was pretty badass for a princess, and I liked that. She was a strong lead, I don’t think she made it to Katniss and Rose status, but she’s super close, more like a Sydney Sage.

Anyways, I did really enjoy this book overall, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes fantasy and books with a more royal kindgoms setting.

Okay, so lets talk about Kaden and Rafe. I was so sure that Rafe was the assassin. The very first thing apart from their looks that made me think he was the assassin was his name, I knew Rafe was not the name of a prince; Kaden on the other hand, does sound like royalty, and I was right on that point because his name isn’t Rafe, it’s Jaxon. That little fact alone could’ve helped a whole lot. Also their looks, Rafe was described with long unkempt dark hair, while Kaden had blond hair and brown eyes, that little fact reminded me of Maxon from the selection, and he’s a prince, so that was a deciding factor. The reason why I started to figure out I was probably wrong was because she was trying to make me believe I was right. Kaden seemed like the loving, royal one, while Rafe not as much.

When Lia was attacked and Kaden had a bow, I mean what kind of assassin fires a bow? That seems like something a prince would know how to do. Also, Rafe’s eagerness with the body? That seemed like something an assassin would do. Then there was the fight between Rafe and Kaden, Rafe took his shirt off, and that’s not a very royal thing to do, and Kaden”s fighting skills just seemed a lot more royal. Anyways, I’m not upset that I was wrong, but color me surprised when Kaden came out and announced he was the assassin, I honestly thought it was like a joke, that he’s figured out Rafe was the assassin and he’s somehow fooled the others. It wasn’t until Rafe;s chapter with Sven when he was waiting for Lia to show up that I let my stubborn mind accept defeat lol.

Let’s talk about Walther. I knew he was going to die, from that first scene with Lia in the woods, I don’t know, I just knew, he seemed so happy and confident over the fact that he was going. to be a dad, that I knew he wasn’t. I didn’t know Greta would die though. When he actually died, that scene broke my heart. Seeing her dig his grave though, that was heartbreaking, but it really made me respect her even more. I love the fact that Kaden decided to hlp her in any way he could. He couldn’t exactly help her bury them, but he found a loophole around that, and that was nice. I’m really starting to like the other assassins, except for Malich of course.

Also, Lia’s powers what exactly are they. I know she’s important, I mean the songs were about her, but I’m not exactly sure as to what that means yet. I think the Scholar knew about it though, and that’s why he didn’t want her to have it. Although, I don’t know if her mother knew, or why she tried to suppress her powers, but I don’t think she’s evil.

My favorite line in that entire book, was after she found out that the assassins were the ones who killed Greta, and when Kaden came after her she told him: “I may be your prisoner, but I am not your whore” That just showed some sass, and even though I felt bad for K, I was clapping for her.

Then that end! When Rafe got himself captured, I mean honestly, of all the plans I thought he’d come up with, that wasn’t it. I loved the he told her who he was though. Isn’t it ironic, how the guy she actually fell in love with, was the one she was supposed to marry. If she’d just gotten married then none of this would’ve happened and she still would’ve gotten to be with someone who loved her.

Though the Greek and Roman crewmembers of the Argo II have made progress in their many quests, they still seem no closer to defeating the earth mother, Gaea. Her giants have risen—all of them—and they're stronger than ever. They must be stopped before the Feast of Spes, when Gaea plans to have two demigods sacrificed in Athens. She needs their blood—the blood of Olympus—in order to wake.The demigods are having more frequent visions of a terrible battle at Camp Half-Blood. The Roman legion from Camp Jupiter, led by Octavian, is almost within striking distance. Though it is tempting to take the Athena Parthenos to Athens to use as a secret weapon, the friends know that the huge statue belongs back on Long Island, where it "might" be able to stop a war between the two camps.The Athena Parthenos will go west; the Argo II will go east. The gods, still suffering from multiple personality disorder, are useless. How can a handful of young demigods hope to persevere against Gaea's army of powerful giants? As dangerous as it is to head to Athens, they have no other option. They have sacrificed too much already. And if Gaea wakes, it is game over.

This book has been a highly anticipated release for me, so I had very high expectations, and I’m glad to say, it met them. House of Hades left us, not really on a cliffhanger, but we knew that the battle would be happening soon. It was obvious, that Gaea would loose, just like Kronos lost in the original PJO series. I was very afraid as to which of the seven would die, because we were all sure that one of them would die, and the way it was all executed in the book was really amazing. There really isn’t much to say without spoilers, only that it was really good. If you guys haven’t read the Percy Jackson series, I really don’t know what to say, only that you need to get on that asap. If you’ve read PJO and haven’t stated HoO yet, then please do, trust me. The first book isn’t as good as Lightning Thief but the series is really amazing.

The summer holidays are dragging on and Harry Potter can’t wait for the start of the school year. It is his fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and there are spells to be learnt, potions to be brewed and Divination lessons (sigh) to be attended. Harry is expecting these: however, other quite unexpected events are already on the march …

.

I really enjoyed this book. I do still prefer Prisoner of Azkaban but this book is probably my second or third favorite. This book is bit different then the others prior to it, not only because of it’s size but the conflict was a bit different. First of all, the book doesn’t start on Harry’s birthday like the others had, and something different was happening. The Triwizard Tournament was taking place this year, and naturally Harry was involved when he wasn’t supposed to be. This book I think its kind of a bridge in the seris, it’s the middle book, it still has the playfulness of the first three, but also delves into the seriousness that is sure to come in the last 3 books. The book is pretty long, but once you get invested in it you won’t get bored, and it’ll go by quickly. It took me like a week to read it, and yea that’s not short, but its mainly because I was too lazy most of the time to pick it up. I think this was a pretty strong sequel and I’m excited to move on to #5. Also, likusual I watched the movie after reading it, and it was a pretty good adaptation, not as good as Sorcerer’s Stone but better then Chamber of Secrets. It might be tied with Prisoner of Azkaban. Also, one more thing, why is this series considered “Children’s” the first book might, but the rest to me reads like YA. Harry is 14 in this book, therefore he does fit into the YA section. I’m not saying this is “not a book for children” if you’re a child then you can definitely read them, I just feel like it shouldn’t be classified as one, at the very least it should be MG, like PJO. Anyways, those were my non-spoilery thoughts! (: